Tag: parks

Chi Ossé and park advocates call for more funding of New York City’s green spaces

chi ossé park funding rally

Apr. 22, 2025 By Gabriele Holtermann Council Member Chi Ossé, New Yorkers for Parks (NY4P) and local park advocates rallied Monday at Herbert Von King Park in Bedford-Stuyvesant, calling on Mayor Eric Adams to restore funding for the city’s Parks Department and 800 parks-related jobs. Park advocates say underfunding and understaffing have led to…

Over 400 students plant beach grass to fortify Coney Island Creek shoreline from flooding

beach grass planting on coney island

Apr. 17, 2025 By Adam Daly Over 400 student volunteers from across the city helped plant native beach vegetation along the dunes of Coney Island Creek Park this past planting season, part of an effort to combat flooding and climate impacts threatening the southern Brooklyn neighborhood. The students — representing 20 public schools from…

Brooklyn parks scorched by brush fires work toward recovery, resiliency

marine park brush fire

Mar. 13, 2025 By Kirstyn Brendlen Months after hundreds of brush fires burned through Brooklyn’s green spaces, its parks are still recovering — and girding themselves for a future where those blazes are more frequent. This week, the Prospect Park Alliance and Marine Park Alliance were among five city park groups to receive “wildfire…

In Brooklyn, the Great Backyard Bird Count connects people with birds and contributes to science that protects them

brooklyn great backyard bird count

Feb. 21, 2025 By Alesandra Tejeda The timer started at 8:11 a.m last Saturday morning. Almost immediately, Laura Waterbury, an environmental educator with the Brooklyn Bridge Park Conservancy and the leader of the morning’s birdwatching walk, shouted: “Oh! In the water!”  Everyone turned to peer through their binoculars at the Double-crested Cormorant that had…

Founders of now-empty Bed-Stuy Aquarium hope to install permanent fish pond

bed-stuy aquarium

Jan. 13, 2025 By Kirstyn Brendlen Though it has been temporarily disassembled, the Bed-Stuy Aquarium has big plans for the future, organizers said last week, and those plans haven’t changed despite recent news about one of its co-founders. The controversial sidewalk fish “pond” made headlines again this month when Hajj Lovick, who helped create…

Bye, bye, balsam: Say goodbye to your Christmas trees in style at Mulchfest 2024

mulchfest 2024 woman with christmas tree

Dec. 26, 2024 By Kirstyn Brendlen A Mulch-y Christmas to all!  The New York City Department of Parks and Recreation wasted no time helping Brooklynites give their live Christmas trees a responsible “fir-well” as its annual holiday, Mulchfest, kicked off on Dec. 26. New Yorkers buy thousands of live Christmas trees each year, and…

Poetica Coffee rolls into Prospect Park with new mobile coffee cart

poetica coffee cart prospect park

Dec. 19, 2024 By Lauren Rapp There’s a new barista at Prospect Park. Poetica Coffee can now be found slinging coffees from their new mobile food and coffee cart located near the Willink Plaza Entrance.  The cart is officially open to the public, offering a full menu of coffee, snacks, and pastries. The menu…

Bay Ridge’s Vinland Playground reopens after $3.4 million makeover

The renovated playground now offers new play equipment suitable for children of all ages and abilities, including a toddler playhouse, two swing sets, and painted games.

Dec. 6, 2024 By Adam Daly The newly renovated Vinland Playground in Bay Ridge officially reopened Wednesday following a $3.4 million facelift. NYC Parks Commissioner Sue Donoghue and City Council Member Justin Brannan joined residents on Dec. 4 to celebrate the upgrades, which include a toddler playhouse, two new swing sets, and a colorful…